Chicago with Kids
Things to Do……
There are no shortage of things to do in Chicago with kids! We were only there for a few days, so we really had to narrow it down. Although we were there in the shoulder season (off-season for many things, like concerts in the park & visiting the beach), we had beautiful, sunny weather days. We decided to take advantage of the good weather and focus on outdoor activities where we could be walking around (or riding on top of the double-decker bus) enjoying the sights.
These are the things that we did on our first visit to Chicago with kids:
1. Lincoln Park Zoo
The Lincoln Park Zoo is one of Chicago’s FREE attractions, and I have to say I was very surprised by how nice it is. I don’t know if the ‘free’ part had me in the mindset that it would be crappy (I know there is some psych research out there on that phenomenon), but it was REALLY fabulous. We visited the Lincoln Park Zoo for a few hours, but could have spent much more time there, as there is so much to see and do. The animals were very active, which is always fun. And they have so many different kinds of exhibits, both indoors and outdoors.
Plus they had a plaque with one of my life mottoes, so this zoo pretty much had me at hello:
2. Lincoln Park Conservatory
Another FREE attraction in Lincoln Park (right next to the zoo) is the Conservatory. This can be a quick walk through, or you can really take your time to enjoy the huge variety of plants and flowers they have there. I have paid to visit places that are not as nice as this one. It’s great for some photo ops as well.
3. Hop on Hop Off Bus
We like to start our visits to a new city with a tour on a hop-on-hop-off bus. Anytime we have done this type of a tour, we have found that we are able to get a great overview and learn some history that we would not otherwise have learned. We used the Chicago Trolley & Bus company, and were able to get discount tickets from the concierge at our hotel (Radisson Blu Aqua…see review here). We stopped and got off at many of the stops along the way, and used the bus as a way to get around the city too.
4. Navy Pier
During our visit there was lots of construction going on at Navy Pier. It was also off-season, so things were not up and running in full swing. I can’t decide if it was a cool place to go or a tourist trap. It looked like there are lots of things to do there in season, like boat tours and restaurants. They had a $1 special on the one ride that was open, which meant that the line was about a million people long. My son and I walked around while my husband & daughter waited for her to go on the ride. My son and I stumbled upon a stained glass exhibit in one of the buildings that was kind of cool.
There is also the free museum day, but we didn’t realize that everyone and their mother (literally) would also have the same exact idea. By the time we got near the entrance about 15 minutes before the scheduled time, all one million people from the ride line had lined up for the free admission to the children’s museum. We decided to skip it.
5. Millennium Park
Millennium Park has many different sections and things to explore. The first part we came upon was the Jay Pritzker Pavilion. Since we were there just prior to any seasonal events, we didn’t get to see it in action, but it seems like a great place to see a performance. The architecture everywhere in Chicago is fascinating, and this was no exception. We continued on to explore more of the park.
What an awesome city park! I had a preconceived notion that the “Bean” sculpture would be overrated. I am not above admitting I was totally wrong. There’s just something about it. It’s perfect for the selfie culture. You can stare at yourself for a really long time if you are into that kind of thing. The kids had a blast (they are conceited like that). We spent a lot of time taking pictures of ourselves there.
Another cool feature in Millennium Park is Crown Fountain. They are enormous walls of glass bricks with faces of humans somehow projected or reflected (or something) onto them, almost like it is a television screen. The faces move and change, and then spit water at you! Photos can’t really do it justice…it’s just a lot of fun and interesting to see.
6. The Magnificent Mile
Being an Oprah fan for pretty much my entire life, I had her voice stuck in my head as she advertised “Chicago’s Magnificent Mile!” Which meant that we had to check it out. Being not much of a shopping fan though (except for online, where I can get miles and points from shopping portals), it was just kind of….meh. And we had to sneak past the American Girl Doll Store, so as not to precipitate any meltdowns from my daughter.
One place we did find was a pizza place for lunch, Gino’s East. The best part of this tourist trap? restaurant was that they gave the kids white-out and let them graffiti the place as much as they wanted to. That made for a very peaceful lunch, which made it worth eating OK pizza.
7. A Game at Wrigley Field
Check one off of my husband’s bucket list. We took in a Cubs game at Wrigley Field & I did not fall asleep or read a novel while watching the game (both have happened, so it was within the realm of possibility). You can read more about how we used points to get our tickets here.
8. Try local foods
It’s not easy to get my kids to try new foods on a good day, at home. So when we are traveling it sometimes happens & sometimes it’s burgers and chicken nuggets. In Chicago we tried a couple of different pizza places (verdict: they liked Garrett popcorn (verdict: it was really good when it was fresh, just OK later). I know there are many other amazing foods to try in Chicago (right?), but we had the 2 picky kids with us, so maybe next time.
There are so many things that we did not have time for, which makes us want to go back! We didn’t get to go to any of the wonderful (or so I’ve heard) museums, or to the top of the Willis Tower or to the Shedd Aquarium. There is so much to do in Chicago with kids that I think we need to plan some future trips:)
